The nadir. Sage must, and will, be the fall guy - but this on Parish and Hobbs too. Inexcusable from top to bottom.

Brighton now up 4-0, and again singing Eric Cantona’s name in celebration. Chants saluting Albion’s goalscorers in what is probably their greatest ever win over Palace: none.

Brighton 3-0 up and running hoops around Palace, having netted a genuine worldie… and their fans are singing about a Manchester United player from the early 1990s with zero Albion connection. Outstandingly run club, but what a ‘fanbase’.

Love for Oliver Glasner upgraded from 11/10 to 12/10. First Palace win over Forest in the top flight since February 1991!

What an absolutely ludicrous throw-in. Piiiino!

Michael Olise's first ever interview as a Premier League footballer. Shy to the point of seeming reluctant. Deadpan delivery. Brief answers. Chris Grierson: "Will it be a proud moment, wearing number 7 in the Premier League?" Olise: "Yeah, yeah. It's good. Yeah." It's just who he is. You see, now? youtube.com/watch?v=_4qIvbdy…

Reputable footballing outlets queueing up to knock Michael Olise for his 'attitude' in interviews is genuinely irresponsible. Bloke has always been painfully shy off the pitch and a touch ineloquent, too. In countless Palace TV videos his own team-mates struggled to coax him out of his shell. Actual real-life friends: Eze, Zaha, etc. It's not an act. Rival fans spinning it that way is one thing, and - sadly - par for the course on social media. Fellow journos adopting the same line is lazy and reckless. Do your research, and do better.

Crystal Palace FC, top of the league. Kicking off the new season with the number one Sports Travel book in the land - and at #2 in Amazon’s Premier League and European Leagues charts, too. (Big bloody Duncan Ferguson is as stubborn on the shelves as he was on the turf.) Overjoyed. Massive thanks to everyone who bought a copy, or just clicked 'like' on social media. It all counts. Now for some kind of result at Everton, please… #cpfc

Tidy first day of book sales for The Longest Road to Leipzig. Kindle version in at number four, paperback at number three. Just need to shift big bloody Duncan Ferguson out of the way now, but there are a fair few elite defenders who failed to do that – so I'm in decent company. Massive thanks for the support. I really, really believe in this book and am confident that you won't be disappointed. "Wise men say only fools rush in…"

Exactly this. The Longest Road to Leipzig includes… - Abdul, the Eze-obsessed taxi driver who insisted "if you do this, you will win" - Jack, who had no idea that his son Stan was on the HF tifo until it was unfurled in the stadium - Robbie, the Arsenal cabbie saying bye to his wife at Stanstead after a hol in Zante, before going on to Budapest for the CL final - Hector, the Rayo fan teaching Spanish in Dublin with a truly unique hybrid accent - Tom, the Palace obsessive who missed the 2025 FA Cup final due to being with his missus at Eurovision - My dorm roommates who crashed through the door at 3am for endless choruses of 'We're On Our Way' - Uber-cool Polish bus drivers, unnerving Dresden cafe staff, and the kiosk bloke in Bensberg who sold me after-hours booze

New book publication day! The Longest Road to Leipzig is out now, on Kindle and in paperback. It's a travel diary of my last-minute, small-budget adventure to watch Crystal Palace play in their first ever European final: Bristol to Stansted to Dublin to Cologne to Bensberg to Dresden to Red Bull Arena. It’s also the story of how CPFC went on an absurd journey of their own – from never having won anything (we don’t talk about Zenith Data) to three trophies in a year. Link in bio. Thanks as ever for your support. Eaaagles!